Zaandam Ship (Holland America Cruise) Review

Happy Tuesday friends! I hope that you had a wonderful start to the week! Today I am so excited to share my Zaandam ship review from our Holland America cruise that we took in August! As I mentioned on Friday, this cruise was extremely special and I can't recommend it or Holland America enough. (If you are looking for answers to FAQ about Holland America in general you can read more about those HERE.)

The Zaandam Ship is one of Holland America's famous ships, named for Zaandam in the Netherlands (which is close to Amsterdam). The Zaandam ship holds sailings in Mexico and Hawaii in the winter, Canada and New England throughout the summer (like we did) and then in December and January can be found hosting cruises in South America and the Antarctic.

A sister ship to the MS Volendam, MS Rotterdam, and the MS Amsterdam, the Zaandam was christened by Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen. The ship was built in 2000 and features a variety of different opportunities and experiences for its guests. 

The Zaandam exemplifies in many ways the epitome of Holland America Cruises with its elegant and timeless design that y'all will see throughout these pictures. 

On board there is a sun deck (that opens and closes depending on the weather which was awesome), an observation lounge, a captains lounge (which was a favorite of mine), a large pool, hot tubs, outdoor bars, a smaller pool in the back, a library, a spa (that was delightful and amazing), a workout gym with incredible views, a wonderful theater, fantastic dining choices with specialty restaurants, and many more elements.

I have said this many times about the cruise but as you step on board the ship you feel that you have truly stepped into a resort quality vacation. At each place that you turn there is little details that go a long way in ensuring that you not only feel comfortable and at home in your time on the Zaandam but that you also feel like you are being treated like royalty.

Boarding the ship after each excursion was incredibly easy. For those of you who have been on other cruises you know the hassle that can sometimes come after an excursion and then getting back onto the ship with swiping cards and going through security. This was the opposite experience. It was simple, easy, and so quick. 

We were always greeted warmly, and there was often staff members waiting for us with fun drinks to take with us after checking back in. It was a little thing, but it was incredibly well organized and laid out and the extra little touches made you feel special.

One of the things that was an absolute treat was the way that the staff interacted with people. We were incredibly impressed with not only the friendly nature of the staff, but the joy that they obviously had for working for Holland America. The overall service was incredible. We were personally so impressed with each of the staff members who was always going out of to help accommodate everyone on board. They did an incredible job of exuding warmth and compassion with incredible professionalism to each passenger on board. I have an entire post regarding the staff aboard the ship so I won't go into more now, but suffice it to say that it was absolutely incredible. 

.If you have been dreaming of a wonderful cruise to Canada and New England (or to the other places that the Zaandam sails to) than this one - with the Zaandam is a definite and obvious choice to consider. It has honestly been one of my favorite cruises to date and the service and the extras were a beautiful gift. There were numerous times that I would turn to my mom and say- Holland America has this down to a beautiful perfection in every way. 

I hope that this review of the Zaandam Ship on Holland America Cruise has been helpful! Please let me know if you have any questions! I would be happy to answer them!